Stepping into the dreamworld of Sandra Bottinelli

 A while back on a trip to Asheville, my husband and I came across an artist in the River Arts District. I was immediately drawn to her work. Her subjects included beautifully rendered wildlife portraits with  ethereal dreamscape backgrounds and gorgeous sky and cloudscapes.
As we talked with her, we learned she had once also lived in  central Florida. (That's where we live!)

 We had recently suffered a loss, and we found great comfort in a piece titled
Eye of the Needle.

Eye of the Needle

After purchasing a wood print of this piece to take home and add to our personal collection, I got Sandra to agree to an interview with me.

Titan

I love learning more about artists whose work I adore. I hope you do, too. Here's a little insight into Sandra.
(Italicized = D. Renée questions, followed by Sandra's response.)

What is your Quest?
     My quest? I don’t have a specific quest but an idea of how I want to live my life and that would be by living it guided by what is good which is relative. I want to be as true to myself as possible so I can be true to others. Discovering who I am or what I am is a daily quest.
(Interviewers note: So much yes to this answer!)

The Bridge, Sandra Bottinelli

Describe your work for us.
    My work moves from abstract to realistic to a combination of both. It has been described to me as a realistic dream. I have an aha moment every time I am working on a piece that I know is going to be “one of those pieces” and even in between when I am working on pieces that are more like sketches for the masters.

How do you play?
  I play with my sons. I act like a child and this seems to seep into my adult life.
With older folk? I love to dance! Love it!

 How do you mix work & play?
   I mix work and play regularly and cannot seem to separate the two.

Bathing Beauty

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Who inspires you?

Cloud Nine

  People who can do nothing but follow their dreams because the dreams pull them so strongly inspire me.

What's your biggest challenge?

     To stay on the side of light.


What's your biggest dream?

     To stay on the side of light.





 
Where can we find you?

My studio and gallery is located in Asheville’s River Arts District: whitespace,
 129 Roberts Street 2B7, Asheville NC 28801. My work can also be seen at www.sandrabottinelli.com




(You can also Like Sandra on facebook!)

What's the best advice you were ever given?
  In a dream my grandfather (who had since passed) sat across a table from me. There was a great deal of commotion going on around us. He handed me a gift. When I opened it I found a large blow-up raft (that was already blown up – how it fit in that small box I don’t know). On the raft the words were written in large letters “SWIM”. My take on that: Don’t float in life, don’t always let the current take you. You must swim, make your path, struggle for what you must do.

You can see Sandra in her Asheville studio or visit her online.  
She also has the honor of being the featured artist this June during Asheville's Woolworth Walk, Friday June 5th. 
If you are in the Asheville area, stop by the Facebook Woolworth Walk Gallery Page for more info. 

My thanks to Sandra for obliging the curious mind of a fellow creative, and a special thanks for creating such wonderful paintings. Eye of the Needle is one of the first things I see every morning, and it makes all the difference when it comes to staying on the side of light. <3

Just keep sowing...

  This is a letter to the one who feels their garden will never bloom.

It won't be written well, or in proper syntax.
There comes a time when none of that matters.

To the dreamer that is tired of the never ending chase,
To the heart that's heavy, and the soul that's crushed by the weight of rejection,

There comes a time when the only thing that matters is putting one foot in front of the other.
One seed at a time.

The vision of your garden is yours, because only you were meant to have it.
It's grand, unique, complex, and nourishing.
Cultivating it is going to be a cumbersome task, my friend.

To the fingers worked into bloody, gnarled claws,
there will be months,
there may be years, where the only reign is silence and the only growth is doubt.

The urge to wallow in the muddy rows will be great.
As long as you make friends with the earth worm, this is fine.
Pay attention to those creatures closest to you while you toil.
They are more important to your blooms than you realize.

Some will help, some will harm.

Do away with the aphids and get yourself some ladybugs.

Then, dust off your hands and get back to work.

Weed.
Fertilize.
Sow.

 The silence will try to stiffen you. You must not let this happen. You must sing.
You must dance. You must write. You must act. You must paint. You must, you must, you must,
you must,
sow.

Every single creation is a seed.
It is a prayer.
It contains life.
It will give life to another.

Every unanswered prayer is still echoing.
It will sing for years to come.
It will find its ears.
Keep sowing.

Orlando LIVE caught me on camera

 I'm typically camera shy at art events, but Orlando LIVE cornered caught up with me at the I Believe opening reception and we had a little impromptu chat about my paintings in the show.
 There are several brief interviews with some amazing ( and much more eloquent and substantially less awkward) artists that I admire immensely, such as Linda Brandt, Dawn Rosendahl, and Janae Corrado.
(my segment begins @ 6:45)
Orlando LIVE @ City Arts Factory (Jan. '14)